aftershock00

I have a beautiful grabber blue boss that I took for a nice break in ride on Sunday. Unfortunately, it came home with a layer of dirt etc that made me realize I had to wash it prior to putting the cover back on.

I just bought a home and had a hot / cold garden hose valve installed. The temp was about 34 degrees and I had a choice between washing with ice cold water or hot water. Between me not wanting the water to freeze on car, my hands not wanting to freeze, and the mentality that hot water cleans better, I went with the hot water choice for both filling my suds bucket and rinsing the car. I was cautious near the glass windows.

After the fact, I am unsure if I made the prudent decision. I know car wash places in cold weather locations frequently use hot water for the car wash. Still, I don't know whether I have or could have done irreparable damage to car by shocking paint, etc.

So my question is....
Was hot water a bad idea?
Did I do damage.
Could I have done damage?
Or was this a good idea?

I would be less concerned if I used hot water when it was 70 degrees out, but being that it was almost freezing temps, I don't know if the differences in temps could have shocked the paint.
Regardless, is it better to use cold water or hot?
I've never had a home with hot water so this fork in the road has never come up.
I love my car and only want the best for it.
Any advice would be appreciated and I'm happy to be part of the boss family!

Cristoff

You're good

As far as I know, there is no such thing as "shocking" paint with temp changes.

mph07alloy

Consider what the sun does to paint on hot summer days, it takes years for the sun to start to cause visible damage to the the surface, so I'd say water won't hurt anything. Actually hot water may be better at removing certain contaminants.

Tom V

No danger to the paint. As long as you were careful with the glass your good.

SON1C

lol you're fine, many argue that it is better to use warm/hot water to wash the car as they say it breaks the grime gunk down better etc, I wash with hot water in the winter, spring summer I don't bother fall varies
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/...-year-37f.html
check this out, I wash with hot (not warm) water in slightly warmer than you earlier this month

aftershock00

Thank you for the reassuring responses. I want to make it clear that I didnt use hot water for comfort, I did it because I honestly thought I was doing the car / paint a favor for a better clean / contaminant removal. If I thought ice water would get better results, I'd be dipping my hands in a bucket of ice water to wash the car and deal with the frostbite later.

I definately acknowledge how hot paint gets on a 95 degree summer day baking in the sun. My concern is not the temperature of the hot water in and of itself, but rather, the disparity in temperatures of the hot water and cold paint/metal/plastic, etc. Kinda like pouring hot water on an ice cube...it usually cracks. I was unsure if paint has the same reactive characteristics. I would hate to hear a sudden crackle and oh, waddaya know, i have hairline stress cracks on my paint from the immediate expansion/contraction.

Dawghouse

You should be fine and if it does crack take it back to the dealer while its under warranty.

Mrizk1

Why can't you wash the windows with hot water?

Just curious

Tom V

Its a good idea not to put hot water on glass when it is really cold out. It can crack.

Gadgetech

Depending on what type of wax you used and how hot the water was it may be necessary to wax it again. At the very least I would spray with a QD or something similar.